Friday, August 22, 2008

I feel like I have reached a milestone of sorts as this is the 50th bulletin I have sent out since I started in May 2007. Thank you to all the subscribers, as without your support and comments it would not be worthwhile to do.

I again hired a guide, Darrell Vollert, of Chappell Hill Texas. He also guides in the ‘valley’

Several bird species, which are native to Mexico, just cross over into the USA in the RGV or Arizona. So in order to see these birds, one must travel to those locations.

In bulletin #49 last week, I neglected to mention that I visited a private ranch north of Harlingen to take some of the photos. The Harris’s Hawk and the Golden-fronted Woodpecker reproduced below were taken there. It is the San Miguelito Ranch and the owner is Leticia Tijerina. It is a premier destination to find the Ferruginous Pygmy Owl in the spring as they nest on the property. Unfortunately for me, I was a couple of weeks late, but I do intend to return next spring to photo this owl. Their web site is http://www.sanmiguelitoranch.com/

I got photos of 3 species of Tyrant Flycatchers. All these birds just extend their range into south Texas and/or southwestern USA.

The Great Kiskadee (Pitangus sulphuratus) is a large (10”), noisy, & colorful flycatcher. It is unmistakable with the striped head and lemon yellow breast.

The Audubon’s Oriole (Icterus graduacauda) is one of 2 orioles in the USA that is black and yellow instead of the usual black and orange plumage. It is found only along the Rio Grande near Falcon Dam. Here is the male. This was a lifer for me.

Another tiny bird is the Black-tailed Gnatcatcher (Polioptila melanura). Gnatcatchers are gray birds with long tails. This species has a black tail as its distinguishing characteristic. Normally they are difficult to photograph as they are so active. However, this bird responded to the tape and perched up, calling back to the tape.

Also, across the river was a heavily armed contingent of the Mexican army patrolling for drug and human smuggling. It reinforces the sense of danger that exists in this rural area along the Texas-Mexico border. http://www.pbase.com/image/109528224

This was my second birding trip to the ‘valley’ since I started doing photography. I had missed a number of birds on the trip last October and there was also a pelagic trip from South Padre Island that was part of the trip.

Several bird species, which are native to Mexico, just cross over into the USA in the RGV or Arizona. So in order to see these birds, one must travel to those locations.

Here is a Harris’s Hawk (Parabuteo unicinctus). It is a distinctive dark brown color with rufous shoulder patches. It occurs from Texas to Arizona.

The next bird is the Golden-fronted Woodpecker (Melanerpes aurifrons). This is a central Texas bird. The gold patches on the head are the ID mark. This is the female. She has no red on the top of her head.

The next 2 birds were found bathing in the pond at Laguna Atascosa National Wildlife Refuge north of Brownsville TX. The Green Jay (Cyanocorax yncas) is the most colorful of the jays in the USA with yellow, green and blue. However, here he is rather disheveled with his wet feathers.

The Botteri’s Sparrow (Aimophila botterii) is a widely distributed Mexican species that just extends its range into extreme SE Texas and also into SE Arizona. I had missed it last fall, as it had migrated south when I visited the valley. It is a non-descript brown bird best IDed by voice and my guide was able to find it. It tends to be a skulker in the grass, but we managed to tape this bird up and he landed on a barb wire fence and sat there for his portrait.

The last sparrow is the Black-throated Sparrow (Amphispiza bilineata). It is one of the more attractive sparrows with its striped face and black throat patch. I had photographed this bird before, but if another opportunity presents itself, I will take new photos in case I can get a better photo.

Friday, August 1, 2008

I hired a guide, Darrell Vollert, of Chappell Hill Texas. This town is about 1 hour west of Houston. I went specifically to find some of the migrants that I had missed in the spring. Some of the birds nest in that area.

The next was the Swainson’s Warbler (Limnothlypis swainsonii). They nest in the area and we were able to tape in a bird, who finally perched up and allowed some photos. I had photographed this bird on the ground during migration, but the light was horrible. This is one of the more difficult warblers to locate. It is brownish with white eye stripe, bright brown cap and long bill.

The Western Kingbird (Tyrannus verticalis) was readily located on some power lines in the middle of town. The dark tail with lateral white margins is the ID mark to separate this bird from other similar kingbirds.

The one bird we saw, but were unable to photograph was the Mississippi Kite (Ictinia mississippiensis). Luckily for me, several weeks later Ed and Bernice Jackson, who live just northeast of Houston, reported a nest of the birds on Texbirds. They were kind enough to show me the birds and nest with chick. Kites are graceful hawks of the tropical regions. The Mississippi Kite is a fairly common bird, but I had seen it only 3 times before. Here is the adult perched, and the nest with a chick.

Ed also offered to take me in his boat on the Trinity River to find the Swallow-tailed Kite (Elanoides forficatus). We made the trip a week later and found several of these graceful birds soaring over the river. This bird is unmistakable. Thanks a million Ed and Bernice for showing me those birds.

The Least Bittern (Ixobrychus exilis) is the smallest and most secretive of the herons in USA. It is confined to the southeast and perhaps the best place to see it is at Anahuac NWR just east of Houston. To photograph them is a struggle. Jay Mangum and I went to Anahuac on July 4th and we both managed to get some respectable photos of this bird. The way we finally did it, was to just sit in the car for 15-20 minutes and wait for the bird to come out of the weeds to feed. The birds are brown with vertical stripes on the breast and dark top of head and back. The male has black on the head and the female has dark brown. Here are the male and female.

Bolivar Flats along the coast on July 4th had a large flock of Reddish Egrets (Egretta rufescens). This heron is strictly confined to salt water and marsh areas. As it was just after breeding season, they still had the bushy neck feathers and plumes extending beyond the tail. Here is a close-up of this bird and a second photo of him scratching his head.

Lastly is a neat looking dragonfly, the Halloween Pennant (Celithemis eponina). I assume it is named for the orange and black wings. I had seen pictures of it in books, so when I found one at Brazoria NWR, I knew exactly what it was. This is a male.